10 Best Dazzling Views of Montmarte

October 30, 2012

Basilica of Sacre Coeur

With the off season starting in November in much of Europe, now's a great time to book a cheap flight to Paris. Montmarte and its famous Basilica sit on a hilltop overlooking the city. With its mix of different architectural styles, it does not appeal to everyone’s tastes. Adolf Hitler, for example, hated it so much he wanted it blown to bits – that is before his eyes were taken off the Parisian ball by other events, presumably. (Hitler did not appreciate Paris much in general, finding everything a little shoddy. The only Parisian building he really liked was the Opera.)

Rue de l'Abreuvoir

Don’t just tick off the major sights from your travel guide; take some time to explore the back alleys, simply strolling through the streets and letting fancy take you down cobbled lanes and past the historic houses of the once famous artists’ community of Montmartre.

Rue Cortot

Here on Rue Cortot, accommodated in Montmartre’s oldest building where many famous artists once held court, you can find the Montmartre Museum with many fascinating exhibits that can tell you a little about this extraordinary quartier’s history.

A Windmill

Before the onset of the industrial age, before power became cheap and plentiful, wind was the solution of choice whenever energy was needed (sound familiar?). Since there is always a breeze around the hill (you don’t feel it as much today because of all the buildings, but just take a walk behind Sacre Coeur), dozens of windmills were constructed on the slopes of Montmartre. Today, only two are left.

The Moulin Rouge

Three, if you count this one. In the late 19th century, when nightclubs were small and, ahem, intimate affairs, the Moulin Rouge, seating hundreds, broke the mould. It was very much the Caesar’s Palace of its time: bigger, better, bolder. The original, constructed in the same year as the Eiffel Tower, burnt down in 1915, but its legacy remains.

Southeast View from Montmartre

Montmartre is the city’s highest point, so you always have Paris at your feet wherever you go. Views across Paris open up on many walks around the hill, but for the best of them, go to the southern platform just underneath the Sacre Coeur church.

A View from the Rooftops

The Vineyard

Once upon a time, every neighbourhood in and around Paris had its own vineyard. But then the 20th century arrived, and with it the housing needs of a growing population, so they all disappeared one after another. All, that is, except for one, and today, Montmartre is the proud home of the last vineyard in Paris. Even the Montmartrois themselves, however, will admit that the wine is undrinkable – so sour in fact that, as an old Montmartre saying has it, you “drink a quart and pee a gallon.”

The Vendange

While they may not love their local wine, the Montmartrois certainly love their local wine festival. Around the time of the annual wine harvest, the Vendange, wine vendors from all over France set up their stalls on the slopes of Montmartre hill and let you sample their region's product by the glass.

Former broadcast journalist, first with the BBC World Service in London then with several sports cable TV channels, the last of which was Eurosport (France) specialising in American sports. Wrote guide book Paris Movie Walks, about my adopted hometown (since 1993). Now, blogging about easy hiking aiming to interest as many people as possible from different age groups to take it up as it is one of the best thing I discovered albeit a little late in my adult life. Married with one son.